Midday

As the death toll from the COVID-19 pandemic continues to mount, universal testing for the coronavirus is still an aspiration for most Americans who might want to know if they've been exposed to the disease. In order to get a coronavirus test, in most cases, a patient must have an order from a doctor. Tom's guest today is a physician who has to decide who should be tested. Dr. Rameen Molavi is a b...

Tom's guest is the acclaimed writer Louise Erdrich. From her debut novel, Love Medicine, published more than 35 years ago, through 16 subsequent novels, Erdrich has introduced readers to some of literature’s most fascinating and intriguing characters and dazzled her legions of fans with prose that is consistently distinctive and powerful. Her latest novel is called The Night Watchman. It takes pla...

On this special edition of Midday, six reflections on the April 27, 2015 Uprising, and how the community at the epicenter of that unrest - Sandtown-Winchester - has fared since a 25-year old black man named Freddie Gray died from injuries he sustained while in police custody. At the heart of the protests and the rioting that erupted after Gray's funeral: anger and frustration with a system steeped...

Wes Moore and Erica L. Green are two thoughtful observers of Baltimore, then and now. They’ve collaborated on a book that will be released this summer called “Five Days: The Fiery Reckoning of an American City.” Wes Moore is the CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation, one of the largest anti-poverty organizations in the country. He’s also the New York Times-bestselling author of “The Other Wes Moore” an...

Staying safe at home and on line. Zoom enables some of us to work remotely, worship, and stay in touch with friends and family. But do these video meetings make us vulnerable to cyber-crime? Tech expert Tina Williams Koroma has tips on cyber security, and Baltimore Councilman Yitzy Schliefer talks about the City’s cyber preparedness. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us a...

The COVOD-19 pandemic poses a particular threat to people in prisons - both inmates and correctional officers. The basic tenets of virus mitigation, social distancing and frequent hand washing, aren’t possible, and the number of older inmates is substantial. Roughly 12 percent of the nation’s 2.3 million inmates are over the age of 55. Last Sunday, Governor Larry Hogan issued an executive order th...

Today, a discussion with the people working to put food on the tables of Maryland families who are experiencing food insecurity because of COVID 19. Tom’s first guest is Carmen Del Guercio, the president and CEO of the Maryland Food Bank, a non-profit organization that distributes food to pantries, soup kitchens and other organizations. Donations of to the Food Bank are currently down 90%. Later i...

This morning, Maryland officials announced 854 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus over the past 24 hours, bringing the total to at least 13,684 patients afflicted with COVID-19. At least 582 Marylanders have perished so far in the pandemic. There are hopeful signs that the rates of new infections and hospitalizations are leveling off in some of the nation’s worst-affected locations like New Yo...

Today on Midday, two leading public health experts provide updates on efforts to mitigate COVID-19, the outlook for testing, and redoubled efforts to reach out to the African American community here in Baltimore. Earlier in today's program, Tom spoke with Dr. Lisa Maragakis, a senior specialist in epidemiology and infectious diseases with Johns Hopkins Medicine, and a member of the Governor's MD C...

Last month, after Governor Hogan issued a stay-at-home order for Marylanders, theater companies had to cancel the live performances that are at the heart of their artform. But many of the 40+ theater groups in our area are pivoting to digital technology to stream performances directly onto computers and tablets and TV screens, and they’re devising other imaginative ways to keep their audiences eng...

Dr. Sonja Santelises, the CEO of the Baltimore City Public Schools on how are teachers, students and parents are working their way through the challenges of distance learning. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

My guest today is Washington Post columnist and Brooking Institution senior fellow E.J. Dionne, who has written a timely book that makes the case for how Joe Biden can bring the Progressive and Moderate wings of the Democratic Party together. The book is called "Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country." Dionne calls for a Politics of Remedy and a Politics of Dignity,...

Today on Midday, the author and entrepreneur Steven Brill on his latest project, NewsGuard, a source that exposes sites that are deliberately and often maliciously proliferating false claims about the coronavirus. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Baltimore journalist Baynard Woods joins Tom now. A month ago, on March 15th, Baynard suddenly developed a fever, and he was coughing. Over the next three weeks, on social media, he chronicled his experience as his illness got worse, and as it ebbed and flowed until he was finally without COVID- 19 symptoms. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Today, a look at Psychological First Aid in times of crisis. Dr. George Everly is my guest. He’s a pioneer in the field, and co-author of The Johns Hopkins Guide to Psychological First Aid. For more than three decades, he has helped survivors of catastrophe -- including war, natural disaster, terrorist attacks and now, pandemic. Dr. Everly is a psychologist and an associate professor of psychiatry...

Mother Mary Lange founded of the Oblate Sisters of Providence in Baltimore in the 1820s. Activist Ralph Moore talks about efforts to persuade Pope Francis to canonize Mother Lange as the first African American Saint. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

With coronavirus testing, hospitalization, mortality and recovery data now being released that includes breakdowns by zip code and race, we are getting a clearer picture of who is becoming ill, and where concentrations of infection and fatalities are located. Northwest Baltimore has more cases than anywhere in MD. Federal, state and local officials have all warned that Baltimore City is likely to...

We begin today with an update on the situation in New York City. The metropolis leads the nation in the number of COVID-19 cases and daily fatalities, even as the United States leads the world, by far, in COVID-19 cases, according to the World Health Organization. Hospitals in New York City have had a bit of good news this week. There is, as of today, no shortage of ventilators, for example, and t...

Enduring Racial Disparities in Health Compound COVID-19 Pandemic For African Americans Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Last month, after Maryland Governor Larry Hogan declared a ban on all large public gatherings, the region’s theaters — like most of its businesses — were closed to the public. But actors gotta act, and it wasn’t long before the theater community found new and creative ways to connect with their stay-at-home audiences. We'll hear about some of them today. Tom is joined first by our theater critic,...

So far, Maryland’s hospitals are not overwhelmed. There is not a shortage of ICU beds and ventilators. But if that changes, hospitals may be faced with unthinkable decisions about rationing equipment and some life-saving treatments for patients in their care. We’ll talk about that today on this edition of Midday on Ethics. Dr. Jeffrey Kahn is the director of the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of B...

Remote learning has laid bare the extent of the digital divide between poor communities and others. Many kids live in households that don’t own a computer, or access to Wi-Fi. How can we acquire and distribute the technology these kids need? Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Through digital platforms, and telecommunication, the Enoch Pratt Library is making valuable resources like, tutors, research databases, online classes and of course, books, available to students across the city. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

As we continue to hunker down in our homes (and that includes Midday host Tom Hall), a conversation about two very important elections coming up in the next couple of months. Voters in the 7th Congressional District have three weeks to vote for a successor to the late Congressman Elijah Cummings. Democrat Kweisi Mfume is running against Republican Kimberly Klacik to fill the remaining time in the...

Now, another in our series of Conversations with the Candidates. Tom's guest is Dan Sparaco, an attorney in private practice and a candidate who's running in the June 2 primary election for Baltimore City Council President. He is one of eight candidates -- seven Democrats and one Republican -- in the race. He is running on a platform of political reform and a fundamental restructuring of the City...